Transition and Reentry for Corrections PopulationIn 2009, the 150th Georgia General Assembly established the Behavioral Health Coordinating Council (O.C.G.A. 37-2-4) with the passing of HB 228, which reorganized and reestablished Georgia’s health and human services agencies. The council is chaired by the commissioner of the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities, Frank Berry.

In 2013, the Behavioral Health Coordinating Council convened a transition reentry workgroup, jointly chaired by Jay Neal, executive director of the Governor’s Office of Transition, Support and Reentry, and Terri Timberlake, director of DBHDD’s Office of Adult Mental Health. The workgroup brings in partners from multiple state agencies involved with the corrections population. Together, the workgroup explores interagency barriers to reentry, and develops strategies to better coordinate services between agencies, so that individuals with mental illness who are transitioning from the correctional system back into society may have easier access to the services and supports that help them build successful lives in their communities.